Monday, June 27: shelter from the storm

Monday, June 27: Peaks of Otter to Orchard Gap

I slept late in my luxurious bed in the Peaks of Otter Lodge, made my protein shake, and packed up. I indulged in a fresh cinnamon roll at the lodge snack shop before taking off. I admired an unusual looking camping trailer, and the woman beside it said her husband built it by hand and made it suitable for off-road travel. Then she leaned in for a conspiratorial whisper: “We like camping away from other people.”

“So do I,” I replied.

We wished each other safe travels and drove off. The stretch of the Blue Ridge through southwestern Virginia is spectacularly beautiful. It is a smooth two-land blacktop road with almost no intersections, plenty of curves, and amazing mountaintop views around every corner. A few rhododendron (or maybe they are mountain laurel) are still in bloom.

I saw several healthy looking Virginia white-tailed deer. One large doe looked right at me, and seemed to say, “This is our mountain. You are welcome to ride through it, but please do not disturb our peaceful lifestyle.”

Once, when the parkway dipped into a small mountain valley—called a hollow, or “holler” down here—I waved at a farmer on his John Deere green tractor. He waved and seemed to say, “This is our holler. You are welcome to ride through it, but please do not disturb our peaceful lifestyle.”

Farther down the parkway, I passed a farm with a herd of cattle. One cow looked at me and seemed to say, “Moo.”

The timing was perfect for me to stop for lunch at a restaurant next to the historic Mabry Mill, which E.B. Mabry operated from 1910 to 1935. Today the National Park Service maintains it, and they continue to grind grain and preserve all the associated operations as a demonstration farm, so future generations can appreciate what old-fashioned milling was like.

After a delicious lunch, I returned to my bike, and chatted with a nice couple from Washington who had just pulled in on a Harley. “Do you have a weather ap?” asked the man. He said he just got notification from the National Weather Service that a series of fast-moving cells with severe thunderstorms were moving through the area. He said they got rained on a few minutes ago.

We were at mile marker 175, and my plan had been to continue all the way to a campground at mile 240, but I didn’t want to ride in the rain, let along get caught in a severe thunderstorm. I also didn’t want to camp in the rain. Then I looked at my map and saw that Orchard Gap was only 20 miles away at mile 195. I remembered some terrific cabins in Orchard Gap, where I had stayed once before. I made it to Orchard Gap with only a light rainstorm on the way.

The cabin is wonderful! First of all it is dry. But it also has features like air conditioning, cable TV, a stereo, a kitchenette, and a Jacuzzi for two. Furthermore, it has a front porch with a view of the mountains and a porch swing and rocking chair. Best of all, the price is only $95—far less than what I paid for the motel rooms on this trip. I landed in heaven!

 

In the early evening I walked down the hill to the little store, and as I did, a cloud rolled in. I was very glad that I wasn’t trying to navigate the parkway in such a thick fog.

I had a great meditation on the porch, a relaxing soak in the Jacuzzi, and a good night’s sleep in the comfortable bed.